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Sunday, May 28, 2017

WHO WILL BE THE NEXT DARNA?

Angel Locsin as
Darna, on the cover of

MOD August 12, 2005
issue.

The Sexiest and most popular Darna.

In the 21st century,
we’ve seen four actresses portrayed the role of Darna. Regine Velasquez did a
cameo of Darna in the Bong Revilla film Captain
Barbell (2003), and also donned the costume in her The Singer and the
Songwriter concert tour (2004). Angel Locsin beat all the television
ratings record portraying the role in the 2005 GMA-7’s Darna series. The Kapuso Network made a Darna remake starring Marian Rivera in 2009-2010. In that remake,
Angel Aquino portrayed a predecessor Darna. Ruffa Mae Quinto also wore, albeit,
a fake Darna costume (so, she’s not included in the list).

Since
2013, when ABS-CBN obtained the rights to Darna from the Ravelo heirs, talks have been circulating that
Angel Locsin will again play the prized role, this time in the big screen. It
awakened the Darnamania not only in
the Philippines but all over the globe. Star Cinema, ABS-CBN film outfit, was supposed to make the
“biggest” film ever in Philippine cinema history with award-winning director Erik Matti and his production company Reality Entertainment at
the helm of Darna, the Movie. In June
2014, Angel Locsin even announced: “Pwede ko na siguro sabihin. It’s official,
nasa sa akin na ulit ang bato!” (I think it can already be said. It’s official,
I again have the [magical] pebble!) Vilma Santos, also a former Darna portrayer, was said to play the role of Lola Asay, and Sarah Lahbati was to play Valentina.

Indeed,
Locsin was already preparing to don the crimson bikini again, but she got
injured during stunt training. She developed a "disc bulge" in her spine because of the strenuous training. Darna fanatics, however, did not lose hope. They
even created websites bannering “Darna Waits (for Angel).” Up until the end of September 2016, Locsin was still the only choice to play Darna. Several months passed,
the wait continued until Locsin himself finally said that she could no longer
play the role.

Many,
millions to say the least, were disappointed. The legacy of Mars Ravelo’s
Darna, however, needs to move forward. The hunt for the new actress to portray Darna
begins. I just hope that this time, they will make Darna, the original Filipino
superheroine that she is, and not a second-rate copycat of Wonder Woman that other writers and
directors have portrayed her in the past, especially after Mars Ravelo had passed away. (Read
more about Darna in my blog: Darna: The Original Filipino Superheroine. Read also the proof that Darna is the original, and it is Wonder Woman that is a copycat: The Untold True Beginning of Darna)

Darna
is a career defining role. Ever since Rosa del Rosario soared on the silver
screen as the first Darna, it has been a much sought after role for many
aspiring actresses. There are, however, a few actresses who backed out from
portraying the role after it was offered to them. Before Gina Pareño was
bestowed the “magical pebble” for Darna
at ang Planetman (1969), two actresses, Anna Gonzales and Vilma Valera,
were considered to play Darna, but they both declined. I can’t imagine the
regrets in their minds afterwards.

On
the other hand, there were actresses that probably would have given justice to
the superheroine role. Among them Delia Razon (in the 1950s, perhaps after Rosa
del Rosario), Alma Moreno, Gretchen Barretto and Dawn Zulueta (in the 1980s),
Ina Raymundo (in the 1990s), and Nadine Samonte and Glaiza de Castro (after
Angel Locsin and Marian Rivera). The amazing lady who played Bathaluman Ether
in the Encantadia remake, Janice
Hung, has all “assets” fit for the role, she’s beautiful, sexy, physically
athletic, and can kick butts being a wushu champion. Too bad she’s on a rival
network.